When I Am a Mom, I Will NOT Let My Son Be a Matador

I say this with the utmost of conviction. Nor will I let any of my grandchildren be matadors. My reasons for this are three-fold:

1. It is extremely dangerous. In Spanish, we would say, "Es muy peligroso."
2. Those poor bulls. I am not a huge animal rights activist or anything, but it is so sad to watch those poor animals die.
3. It's kind of boring. While we were only at an amateur event, I felt that the entire ordeal was not nearly entertaining enough to justify killing six, yes I said SIX, toros (bulls). I actually read a book while it was happening because I couldn't watch anymore.

Anyway, at least I can say that I saw a bullfight in Spain, right?

Saturday, we went to Córdoba which is a 1.5 hour train ride from Sevilla. This was the primero vez I can remember being a passenger of a train and it was a lot of fun. I rode backwards both times which was extremely exhiliarating. About 20 people or more went to Córdoba that day, but we broke into groups based on the trains we took. There were six girls in our group and I hadn't really hung out with three of them before and it was a blast! We began the trip by taking a jumping photo shoot by the fountains and then by climbing on THE COOLEST jungle gym I have ever seen before! Honestly. I think the 15 euros we paid to get there would have been worth it just for that jungle gym. We proceeded to peruse the tiendas at a street fair and all purchased tight friendship bracelets. They unfortunately do not say BFF on them, but we can see the letters there in our hearts.

Next, we walked through the gorgeous streets of the town and finally stumbled upon the Mezquita, a beautiful, centuries-old mosque that has been converted into a church. Full of reverence, we ate our lunch (bocadillos) on the steps of the Mezquita and then wandered into the courtyard to decide what our next move would be. Since the Feria was in town (I'll explain shortly) and, along with it, a bunch of tourists, there were no student discounts to enter the Mezquita as there usually are. And in classic Ashleigh fashion, I was able to avoid paying the 8 euros they were demanding for entry. Instead, we followed some ladies in beautiful flamenco dresses to the local fair. I am not joking, I spent my Saturday in Córdoba, Spain attending a carnival.

It's called the Feria and is basically a celebration of the city. Most cities in Spain have one from what I can tell (Sevilla's is in April) and in Córdoba, lots of the attendees dress up. The women and girls wear beautiful, custom-made Flamenco dresses - each with their own special patterns and with a flower in their hair to top it off. And the men and boys wear caballero outfits and a few of them ride horses. In a few rare cases, you can find a cross-dresser, such as the one we encountered upon entering.

We rode the ferris wheel, watched ladies dance the Flamenco and basked in the Spanish culture that we are so privileged to be learning about. I cannot express how happy I am that we spent the day at the Feria instead of in some stinky old building. While that history is beautiful and special, actually participating in the culture was incredible. Meeting several citizens and taking part in their lives for a day was beyond amazing.

We finished the day by reading in the park and hopping back on the train. Drained and content, we returned to our house, ate dinner and called it a night.

Ohhh life.

El Baile del Chiki-Chiki

So I finally decided to write a post on here when I'm feeling better. :) I'm sure you are all very happy for that!

The last two weeks have been a roller coaster of emotions but I finally decided to de-board the ride and take control of my own attitude towards this trip. Ever since I made that decision, I have been having the time of my life and have really been able to enjoy this beautiful city I'm privileged enough to live in for a while!

This week has been packed with fun things to do ranging from a classical strings quartet concerto to a photography exhibition to a night on the town with my dancing divas! Don't worry though Dad, there were classes and a test jammed in there too. We even had beautiful weather on Thursday.




The city truly is beautiful and I can't wait for a pretty day to take pictures of the buildings in the middle of the city. They are straight from a movie.

As I was thinking about interesting things that you all may want to know, I came across this little gem that my professor shared with our class last week: El Baile del Chiki-Chiki. Don't ask questions, just watch.

Tomorrow, a group of about 20 girls are going to Córdoba which is about a 1.5 hour train ride and coming back in the evening. This will be my first time attempting international travel without adult supervision, so I have a feeling there will be some bumps and bruises along the way. But there couldn't be anything more fun, right?

I'm also trying to make plans with my mother for some additional travel time at the end of the trip. Please feel free to comment and share the places you recommend. So far, we are looking at Cinque Terre, London, Amsterdam, Paris and somewhere in Greece the most.

Also, really quick anecdote: my madre lent me this sweet leopard-print jacket to wear whenever it's cold outside. Pretty much sums me up in a jacket.

Well I have to go meet some girls for some cafe con leche, but I will try to update with a really good post on Sunday. I love you all and I hope to hear from you soon!

Georgia On My Mind

I wish I could report that the weather in Sevilla has been improving. However, this just simply isn't the case. My madre is infuriated with the constant rainfall, and I have to agree with her.

Despite the weather, there are plenty of things that are keeping me happy and entertained though. Our first weekend in Sevilla was extremely fun and contained a couple of activities that reminded me of home.

The weekend festivities began Friday evening with a bang. Most of the group attended a discoteca called Buddha... it was a little more happening than its twin-named bar back in Athens. I introduced the group to my style of dancing, and, to my happy surprise, most embraced it and one even dances just like me!

Saturday, several of the girls got together and went shopping and just enjoyed walking the streets of Sevilla. We got another little piece of home when we went to Burger King for lunch. I have never wanted a hamburger so bad! It was delicious, but was quickly ruined when Sarah Beth and I were the unfortunate viewers of a completely exposed breastfeeding in the middle of the restaurant.

Sunday, Mallory and I attended mass at the Catedral de Sevilla. It was so good to go and hear about God in a completely other language in such a beautiful and historical place. Then, after a 3.5 hour-long siesta, we went to the Sevilla v. Bilbao fútbol game. It was one of the highlights of my entire life! Sevilla won on top of that, which just made it that much better! The fans could compete with the student section at Georgia... it was that good.


We ended out the weekend by watching Top Gun last night, which made me happy and sad at the same time. It definitely made me miss my family, but it was nice to have a piece of home with me.

I'm still riding the roller coaster of emotions here. I am ready to just be completely happy to be here, but I am supposing that will come with better weather and better communication with my madre.

All in all though, I'm having a fun time and I'm looking forward to blue skies. Keep me in your prayers and remember that I miss you all!

Here Comes the Sun... Do do do do... It's All Right

Things have definitely been looking up the past few days. The culture shock of earlier this week was much stronger than I had anticipated. But, we quickly are getting into the swing of things and are beginning to really enjoy the time we have here. The weather has been much friendlier, which has a big impact on my mood.

A typical day for me begins by waking up at 8:30 am, showering, eating breakfast and walking about 20 minutes to school. My first class starts at 10 and it is a culture class where we cover Spanish movies, music and television. My teacher is super cool and it's a very upbeat class which keeps me awake and going. Then we have a 30 minute break to finish up homework, drink cafe con leche, talk to friends or scan the internet. After the break, I have another culture class which is much less exciting, which I'm sitting in now. The lady is really nice but the material is more about politics and geography so of course I don't like it as much right now. It will probably be more useful in the long run than my other class.

After classes, we normally go home for lunch around 2:30 and work on homework or take a siesta until about 4:30. There is normally an activity around 5. We have taken tours of the various barrios, gone to churrerías (where they sell churros) and heladerías (where they sell ice cream), visited several important historical Spanish buildings and spent time in the cathedral (one of the biggest and oldest in the world). The activities are extremely interesting, but sometimes they go into too much detail and it's all in Spanish, so it makes it hard to pay attention. We generally go home after that for dinner around 9 and then we either do homework and go to bed or we go out with the group in El Centro.

El Centro is so beautiful. The streets are extremely small with no rhythm that I can figure out yet. The buildings are so beautiful and look just like they do in the movies. They have tons of little bars, cafes and restaurants at every corner and people are out all hours of the night. My favorite place we've been is the carbonería. It is an authentic Spanish bar and every night they have flamenco dancers or musicians play. It is by far the coolest thing I have done in the city so far.

And finally, there are so many beautiful gardens here! I am going to go picture crazy, so keep looking out for my flickr account I'm about to start!

I´m Just a Little Black Raincloud...

Everything here is different. That´s how they tell us to think about it here. Not bad, just different.

I am doing my best to think of it that way, but it´s really hard.

I have always thought of myself as an independent person who doesn´t need to have my hand held. But I feel in over my head here.

Before you read on, be aware that the atypical rainy weather in Sevilla is messing with my mood.

Madrid was wonderful. Right away, I met 40 fabulous people who already feel like old friends and we spent a couple days getting to know each other and getting acquainted with the New York City of Spain. The weather was mis, but we still had an awesome time experiencing this new place together. We visited museums, cathedrals, castles, cafeterias and cervecerias. It felt good.

Then, yesterday, we climbed on a bus, made the six hour trek down to Andalucia, deboarded the bus and were immediately sent off to our ¨families.¨ The lady Mallory and I live with is extremely sweet, but seems just as out of her comfort zone as Mallory and I. She picked us up, took us to her little apartment in the city, walked a block or two with us to point us in the direction of the school, cooked us dinner and sent us off to bathe and bed. I like her, but I don´t know if I will ever feel comfortable in her home. Most of the other kiddies here say their mothers are super-talkative and outgoing. What I would give for someone who would just throw their arms around me and welcome me into their house. Cest la vie.

But we made it through the first night and to classes this morning. I think I am going to love my classes. Both of them are about culture, and while they will probably be a good bit of work, I think they will be fun.



To be fair to Spain, the weather is apparently never this wet. Sevilla is in more of a drought than Atlanta is, so I don´t expect too many more rainy days. Also, once we get used to the way of life around here and pick up the language a bit more, we probably won´t feel too out of place in Lourda´s house.

I just need prayers to be joyful in my circumstances and to learn this language asap. Any and all words of advice are gladly welcomed.




Just know, you are all dearly missed.

Life, As I Know It, Is Over

Yesterday was one of the most depressing days of my life. I wrote my last paper of my college career (except for those I'll write in Spain), packed up the remaining items left in my already empty and lifeless room, said my goodbyes and drove away from Athens for the last time.

The weird thing was that, as upsetting as cleaning out my room was, I don't think it hit me that I was actually leaving until I emptied the food out of my pantry shelf. All of a sudden, I was staring at a vast expanse of space situated carefully between shelves 2 and 4, both which were jampacked with tasty culinary masterpieces, and it hit me. I don't live here anymore.

I know change is good and blahbity blah, but really?

So, as any self-respecting, independent, young, 20-something girl would do, I blasted weepy, nostalgic songs from my iPod the entire way home. I can honestly say that I felt much better about my life after I realized Carrie Underwood and Sara Bareilles have experienced similar points. I felt even better when I realized they were whining about leaving men and I was whining about having to leave friends. See, I'm at least a little less pathetic than I could be.

But my time to cry about leaving one place is almost over because "I'm leaving on a jet plane" for Sevilla tomorrow. As much as I'm sure I'll meet people I enjoy while I'm there, I have been sworn to like everyone there a little less than I like my Athens roommates. I'm pretty sure that won't be too hard.

So, here goes the segment of my life titled Leaving College: Part 1.

No matter what I say later though, I don't like it.